Head of Data Science & AI

Head of Data Science & AI HEAD OF DATA SCIENCE & AI Hybrid in London, United Kingdom We’re looking for a Head of Data Science & AI You'll lead iwoca's data science function – a group building probabilistic and statistical models that make real-time lending decisions. You'll also be a key part of how iwoca embeds AI across the wider business: setting the pace yourself, and raising capability beyond your direct team. The company Small businesses move fast. Opportunities often don’t wait, and cash flow pressures can appear overnight. To keep going, and growing, SMEs need finance that’s as flexible and responsive as they are. That's why we built iwoca. Our smart technology, data science and five-star customer service ensures business owners can act with the speed, confidence and control they need, exactly when it's needed. We’ve already cleared the way for 100,000 businesses with more than £4 billion in funding. Our passionate team is driven to help even more SMEs succeed, through access to better finance and other services that make running a business easier. Our ultimate mission is to support one million SMEs in their defining moments, creating lasting impact for the communities and economies they drive. The team iwoca's data scientists build probabilistic and statistical models that make lending decisions in real time, support forecasting, and shape commercial strategy. Their work is deployed in production code and has direct commercial consequences – it's more than exploratory analysis. The function is now embedding AI into how that work gets done. Successfully leading it will require close collaboration with engineering, product, and commercial teams. The role As Head of Data Science & AI, you'll shape how a technically sophisticated team works – and influence how the wider business adopts AI. Doing that well requires a deep understanding of the modelling work: where AI genuinely changes the work, where it speeds things up, and where a different approach is better. You'll judge what's actually possible with these tools – and challenge the assumptions when the rationale isn't clear. iwoca's data scientists build probabilistic ML models on credit and commercial data, deployed in production, making real-time lending decisions across lending, product, operations, and strategy. The group has approximately 25 data scientists, split across a central team and smaller groups aligned to specific products or domains. You'll report to one of iwoca's co-founders, who is also a data scientist. - AI enablement and adoption You'll set the standard for how AI is used across the group – establishing practices that make adoption safe and repeatable, and creating the conditions for a technically sophisticated group to advance together. - Strategic direction You'll influence where the group invests its resources – deciding what to model, where AI accelerates the work, and where a lighter approach is more effective. You'll shape commercial and product decisions by making analytical trade-offs legible to senior stakeholders, and work with team leads to plan and prioritise across multiple streams. - People and team You'll develop the people around you – raising capability across the group through clear standards, direct coaching, and a genuine investment in how data scientists grow. You'll spot where the gaps are and help close them. You'll also own hiring, shaping how the group assesses and develops talent as it grows. - Commercial opportunity and coordination You'll spot commercial opportunities across the business – where modelling or AI can change outcomes – and work with Engineering, Product, and Operations teams to act on them. You'll represent the group in discussions that shape lending, risk, and product decisions, explaining assumptions, highlighting risks, and helping senior stakeholders act on analytical insight. The requirements Essential - High AI agency: You actively experiment with AI in your analytical and tec ... (truncated, view full listing at source)